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Another false dawn but is it really a false dawn when many expected it to happen anyway?
Manchester United limply surrendered to Nottingham Forest in a 2-1 defeat to again fail to take advantage of a confidence-inducing 3-2 victory over Aston Villa last time out.
The loss to Forest was their fifth in December, a startling statistic for more than one reason.
It is the first time since 1933 that United have lost five games in December, a remarkable feat, considering how much this club has gone through in 90 years.
Even a year is a long time in football, and United have just broken a record that stood for 90.
For context, this 90-year spell contains multiple seasons when United were relegated, there was the “small matter” of a World War in between and a disaster that took the lives of some of the most legendary players of the club.
And yet, in terms of results on the pitch in December, it never got as bad as it has today.
The blame is obviously to be shared, as no single person can bring a club as big as Manchester United to its knees in historically bad fashion.
It is an amalgamation of ill-advised transfers, bad selections over a decade, scattergun executive handling, and all-around incompetence that has brought the club to this state today.
The last time United when were this bad in December, ball pens didn’t exist, and neither did instant coffee, among many other things.
That is five years before the ballpoint pen and instant coffee were invented. And twenty years before Lego and Velcro. I.e. Historically rubbish. https://t.co/EpyepJIxWQ
— Adam Crafton (@AdamCrafton_) December 30, 2023
One would hope that it is darkest before dawn and many injured players are coming back but the reality is that this club needs a systemic reset.
No single player or manager can transform it, they can only give a momentary shot of adrenaline which has fans dreaming of a brighter future before it all comes crashing down again.
In the meantime, United will be heading to Wigan Athletic next to begin their FA Cup campaign on 8th January.
Will January be as bad as December? One just can’t say anything anymore about this club with absolute certainty.
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